Beth Long’s weekly recruiting roundup

With the high school football season in the books in Illinois, some of the top senior prospects are beginning to take their official visits.

Two of note, both verbally committed to Wisconsin, spent time with the Badgers in Madison. Scout.com four-star defensive back prospect Titus Booker of Grayslake North and fellow four-star from Downers Grove North David Edwards were among the athletes on campus for their Badgers big weekend of official visits.

“I enjoyed just getting to know the other commits and being able to see the guys I am going to spend the next four years with, that was a great experience,” Booker said.

Edwards, who played quarterback for the Trojans, will focus on tight end at the collegiate level for the Badgers, so he spent his official with former Waubonsie Valley standout, and current Badger tight end, Troy Fumagalli.

“It was just an awesome weekend. I ate so much food, got to hang out with some of the commits,” Edwards said. “And my host was Troy Fumagalli. Some of the coaches went to the game too so we met up with them, ate dinner with the staff after the game. It was just a lot of fun.”

He added, “Just getting to know all the commits more was fun.”

Plus, both Booker and Edwards got a better feel for the school they have committed to play their college ball.

“While I was there, I just felt that the best part about Wisconsin is just the people around you. Everyone there just shows so much passion about the football team,” Booker said.

Adidas Showcase Standouts

Several area prospects took home honors during the Adidas Top Ten showcase in Detroit, including defensive MVP Naquan Jones, a junior defensive lineman from Evanston.

“Athletic defensive tackle continues to improve. Big men who can move like him are rare and it was easy to see why he has a handful of Big Ten offers already,” Scout.com national recruiting analyst Allen Trieu said of Jones.

Jones has offers from Illinois, Iowa, Indiana and several others.

“I’ve been down to Illinois, and the week before that I went to Michigan State, saw them play Ohio State. That was a really good game. I was supposed to be at Iowa and Wisconsin but I was at this camp,” Jones said.

Fellow junior Wildkit Matt Little took home the quarterback honors from the camp.

“The Western Michigan commit has good size and the arm to make all the throws. Put impressive velocity on his passes,” Trieu said.

Several other athletes that had good days in Detroit were Niles North running back Barrington Wade, Evanston defensive back Travion Banks, and Deerfield junior quarterback Anthony Ranallo.

Other notes

Raby senior defensive lineman Jamal Milan added a new offer from North Carolina after the Tar Heels had been expressing interest for quite some time. The 6-3, 280-pound Milan has offers from all over the Midwest and is fresh off an unofficial visit to Indiana.